OK slacko's its Sunday again.....

[TORB]

and time for your weakly drinking reports. How about we all make a special effort to post something this week, be it notes, vibes or lists. Unfortunately in my case it has been same old, same old, only a couple of bottles of Seppelt 2002 Original FRS this week as I have been racking up a few AFD credits. (I don't consider a few drops of vodka in a tall glass full of OJ booze, it's just a pleasant summer thirst quencher. )

[Ian S]

and time for your weakly drinking reports. How about we all make a special effort to post something this week, be it notes, vibes or lists. Unfortunately in my case it has been same old, same old, only a couple of bottles of Seppelt 2002 Original FRS this week as I have been racking up a few AFD credits. (I don't consider a few drops of vodka in a tall glass full of OJ booze, it's just a pleasant summer thirst quencher. )

Vodka is .... c-thru shame on you!

Tonight a bottle of over the hill Chateau Fuisse Pouilly-Fuisse VV 1988 (and so it was expected at that age). Despite obvious signs of medeirisation, it was surprisingly pleasant to drink. Good wines seem to offer interest even in their last few breaths.

Apart from that, too much work made it an alcohol free midweek.

[Grey Ghost]

1996 Mt Edelstone

Nicely balanced, well structured and beginning to show bottle integration, but with tonnes of life left yet.

Rate this as better than the Armagh of the same vintage - for my palate - and of course, it went well with the food and the company. Damn good.

[TORB]

Vodka is .... c-thru shame on you!

Not once the OJ is in it its not!

[Julio]

2003 Beer Bros Old Vine Shiraz
Lovely sweet black cherry on the nose which continue to the palate with some potent fruits of the forest and white pepper with some sweet oak in their for balance... lovely wine.

[wolf]

2000 d'Arenberg Peppermint Paddock Chambourcin: I normally like d'Arenberg, but this was probably the worst bottle of wine I've ever bought. Lots of VA, green to begin with, moving into a harsh metallic finish. Undrinkable.

2006 Secret Stone Sauvignon Blanc: Passionfruit and guava, nice acid finish. Not as good as the 2005, but still respectable.

[bacchaebabe]

On friday I put together a new rack for the cellar so emptied out quite a few boxes of wine that had been clogging up the cellar. In the process I also emptied an old rack full of stuff I'd forgotten about so I found a heap of past it / borderline stuff that requires drinking.

We went to the Jazz in the domain last night so I gathered up a few dodgy bottles of swill for the masses as these always end up being very drunken affairs.

A friend of a friend had recently arrived from France and she brought along a very nice 03 late harvest style gerwertztraminer we all enjoyed. Unfrtunately I can't remember the name but it was from Alsace, near where she lives.

Unfortunately, I followed that up with a magnum of 01 Queen Adelaide chardonnay that really should have been drunk at least four years ago. I think I bought six of these as picnic wines and this is one bottle I'd forgotten about. After the sweetness of the gerwertztraminer, this appeared like sour water with little depth or flavour. Thankfully after our palates adjusted from the sweetness, it just tasted like an old cheap chardy that should have been drunk a few years ago. Fail

After that stunner, we had what I think was either a 94 or a 96 cleanskin (thus making remembering the vintage difficult) Barrossa Valley Estate semillon. Infinitely better than the chardy as forgotten semillon always fares better than forgotten chardy. No true aged semillon flavours but nothing vile that made you want to spit it out either. Dark golden colour (as they all were) with some discrete lanolin flavours. Pass.

Terrible weekend for wine except the gerwetz but at least I can now get in the cellar again and have been able to count how much wine I have. Now over 150 dozen so I think I need to drink a bit more as it's clearly getting ridiculous! Might try to drink something decent tonight.

[Raymond W]

No wines this week as I have terrible cold. I did have a bottle of Michel Gros Bourgogne Hautes Cote de Nuits 2002 and Castello di Ama 2001 last weekend.

Castello di Ama Chianti Classico 2001 (13%alc, cork)

80% Sangiovese
8% Canaiolo
12% Malvasia Nera and Merlot

Had this wine straight from the bottle. Dark ruby but getting lighter on the rim, going almost watery clear. The initial nose showed stale oak hiding some of the dark fruits of blackberries and cherries. The attack of this wine is all dark fruits and quite velvety as it flows over the tip and onto the rest of the tongue. However, within two or three seconds, the firm but smooth tannins and underlying acidity kicks in leaving a drying, slightly grippy finish with some lingering plums.

After an hour, the bouquet of this wine has blossomed. The stale oak has turned more cedary with a more perfumed nose of sweetish black fruits, cherries, and some spice. With more time, the palate also included an element of sour cherries. This is a lovely wine, and for the price of around 3,200yen / A$33 is great value for money. This is a very good wine, and I have another three more bottles sitting in my cellar. I am not sure if it reflects the typicity of Chianti Classico wines because of the inclusion of Merlot, but for me, it is a really nice wine. I am planning to get a few more bottles as this is one of the best wines that I have had at this price level. I reckon this wine will still be drinking well in five plus years. Not sure about giving points for wines, but I have had three bottles of this wine since October 2006, and none have disappointed.

(Drank 5th January 2007)

[rednut]

With the warm weather up here in the Riverland lately we have been consuming good quantities of sparkling wines. In particular 2005 Houghton Sparkling Rose

At about $9 a bottle on special from Woolies Liquor instead of $13 its a great quaffer on a warm and balmy night served chilled..

Bring on the cooler weather so I can partake in some of my aging reds...

[Shadrach]

Had 2 reds which didn't come up to expectations.
1998 Wynns Coonawarra Cabernet
When first opened it had quite a burnt licorice taste but after a couple of hours breathing this went away. Reasonably good mint chocolate palate but nothing really memorable.
2001 Rosemount Traditional cabernet merlot petit verdot. Jimmy Watson winner and very disappointing. Just a FAQ wine with no redeeming characters. Fruit disappointing and overall a very forgetable wine! I was a big fan of Traditional in mid nineties and can't believe this wine was so ordinary.

[Chuck]

2001 Rosemount Traditional cabernet merlot petit verdot. Jimmy Watson winner and very disappointing. Just a FAQ wine with no redeeming characters. Fruit disappointing and overall a very forgetable wine! I was a big fan of Traditional in mid nineties and can't believe this wine was so ordinary.

This wine used to be by Rycroft of McLaren Vale before Rosemount tried to buy respectability when moving away from the Hunter Valley. A small and well respected vineyard it was a great value quality blend.

Chuck

[GraemeG]

With friends at a casual dinner at home;

2003 Egon Müller Scharzhof Riesling (Saar 1 04) [11.5%, cork]
Youthful floral and musky aromas predominate; the palate does retain some lightness, but despite prickly acidity it doesn’t seem to quite retain the freshness you might expect, and becomes quite thick in feel. A victim of the very hot vintage conditions, this should be drunk fairly early I think.

1997 Mount Mary Chardonnay (Yarra) [13.5%, cork]
When this appeared in the glass displaying a gold colour deep enough to alarm your average urologist I was glad I had something else in the fridge as well… Sure enough, the predominant aromas were of maderisation, that burnished coppery semi-oxidative smell that tells you this wine is on its last legs. It is still drinkable, however – for some palates it’s probably ideal. Quite rich and full, with nutty figs and a fine oak cut, but the finish is drying up quickly. My only bottle, so I don’t know how typical this is.

1997 Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon (Hunter) [10.4% cork]
The ‘back-up bottle’ covered itself in glory. A glowing lemon colour, the nose offers the toasty richness that is the hallmark of aged Vat 1. Light and refreshing on the palate, but also rich in dried honey flavours, this is only part way along its development curve. Terrific stuff.

2001 Disnoko Édes Szamosodni Tokaji [500ml, 13%, cork, $20]
A recent experimental purchase, this is a sweet wine made from non-botrytised grapes (I presume the usual Furmint & Hárslevelü). Apricot & honey flavours are of moderate sweetness, but the finish is almost dry; it’s not an over-sweet wine, and not in the least cloying. Modest alcohol keeps the weight in check as well. Not meant for overly sweet desserts either, this is pretty satisfactory for the price.

cheers,
Graeme

[mkcoleman]

Just back from a trip to Queenstown New Zealand, so we decided to only drink Sav Blanc and Pinot Noir.

Sav Blanc
2005 (?) Villa Maria Reserve Clifford Bay My wife's favourite Sav Blanc, a little lighter than the Coudy Bay, clean, crisp and lovely limey taste coming through
2006 Cloudy Bay - I liked this more than the wife as it was a little more compex than some of the other wines, several layers coming through and a lovely crisp finish
2006 Montona Limes definitely coming through as well as gooseberries, not a bad drop especially given the price
2006 Peregine Found this to be fairly acidic, in fact very much like the Oxford Landing Sav Blanc, okay.

Pinot Noir
2004 Escarpment - This is the wine that turned my wife from not liking any reds, to loving Pinot. I think this is a great drop and the bottle disappeared very quickly. Lovely and smooth with some cheery and strawberry coming through. The wife for the first time has actually requested that I order some bottles of red. We drank alot of this during the hols
2004 Rockburn - Had this with some pizza, lovely, cheery, plum and strawberry, not quite that of the Escarpment though

[GRB]

Wirra Wirra Woodhenge Shiraz 2004
Rich ripe fruit with chocolate and a dash of oak, yummy stuff

Penfolds Bin 128 2003
Brought over by a friend, nice enough wine but just made me believe my decision not to buy this vintage was the correct one.

Tatachilla Foundation 1997
Nice enough wine with good complexity and great length but just suffering a bit from the tough vintage, bit of a awkward flavour profile.

More SOSS 2004 gotta luv summer.

Glen

[GrahamB]

I had lunch on Sunday with some wine loving friends and some great wines were consumed. No notes taken and I have been struggling with sore kidneys today. I think it was traveling home on the City Cat and then a bus which caused the kidney pain.

I know I have missed some but WGAS.

NV Nicholas Feuillatte
NV Nicholas Feuillatte Rose
NV Bollinger Magnum
1993 Dom Ruinart
2002 Rockford Black Shiraz
1999 Tyrrells Vat 1 Semillon
1995 Mt Pleasant Lovedale Semillon
1996 Alsace ???????? Riesling
???? Taylors Riesling Magnum
1996 Petaluma Chardonnay Magnum
1975 Yeringberg Pinot Noir
2003 Meerea Park Hell Hole
1994 Wynns Black label Cabernet Magnum
2001 Wolf Blass Platinum Shiraz
1977 Grange
1967 Yalumba Sauterne
2003 Kabminye Au 375 ml
1977 Yalumba Racehorse Port

Graham

[Ian S]

2006 Cloudy Bay - I liked this more than the wife

Don't tell her that!

[Alex F]

Bit disorganised so its kind of hard to post notes... but here goes...

Coto De Imaz Rioja Reserva 2000

Rich nose that reminded me a bit of bean paste when we first opened, I think it was nicely supported by tannins and acidity. Oak is perhaps more preferrable for those who like oaky reds... We left 1/3 in the bottle for 5 days and today the fruit has faded, but not completely, and the oak has of course become a bit more dominant. All in all a very pleasant and long wine for the $$$. Very good.

[tpang]

1999 Quorum Barbera D'Asti
2000 Noon Eclipse

the Quorum was a wonderful drink, very easy, light and well balanced.

the Noon was well, as expected from the 2000, bland, nothing much going on, weak on the pallet.

[mattECN]

2006 Wirra Wirra Sauvignon Blanc – nice enough, lacking any real outstanding characters for mine.

2006 Howard Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc (Adel Hills) – really good value – drinking really well at the moment, more complexity than the Wirra Wirra Wine.

2006 Rockford Alicante – loved this – crowd pleaser for sure

[Michael McNally]

2001 De Bortoli Yarra Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. 13.5%. Cork.
Nice deep colour. Cassis, cedar and chocolate on the nose. The medium-bodied palate doesn't live up to the nose, with less fruit than I expected. Nice enough, but unremarkable. Good.

Also a 2004 Marius 'Sympatico', see separate TN.

[cuttlefish]

Geez....Tuesday, and I can't even remember what I drank on the weekend...???
Ummm...
(5 minutes later)
Stanton and Killeen Shiraz Durif 2004
Rich but not too rich. Seemed OK, but would have liked to have tried it following day,as I expect it would have gained a little more weight and maybe a little interest. Never got to.
Sinclair Sauvignon Blanc 2006
Good depth of flavour, touch of lime. Notably not a really crisp wine, but quite flavoursome and enjoyable for that.

Tom.

[oakboy]

Was down in Vic(Geelong) last week for a Family party, brother in law let me raid his cellar, but impressions only( It was a big weekend)
St Henri's 1999
One of the best i've had at this age, needs plenty of time, fruit still surfacing past the vanilla/choc oak A++
Bannockburn Pinot 2001
Oz pinot as it should be.. smokey/ nice length got better in the glass, drank mine too quick A+
De bortoli Cab Sav 1998
Once again very nice, just slightly in that cab sav hole, needs another 2 years and whoa ha.. A

Managed to do a few geelong winery's while i was down there and from what i tasted the 2005 vintage was supreme!!!
Kilgour Estate 2005 shiraz was a ripper from $25 CD, beautiful peppery Cool climate style( a great Rest with good views as well) A
Bellarine Estate "Two Wives" 2005 Shiraz $28 CD another ripper..A
Scotchmans Hill Cab Sav 2005, $29 CD the pick of this line up and.. another ripper...A
Must have being a great 2005 vintage in the geelong area!!
Cheers all

[rorie]

Penfolds 407 1996
Beautiful nose upon opening. I let this breathe for about 2 hours and the concentration was still evident. Very little softening in that time. Drank like a wine of 5 years not 10. Great balance of fruit, and I didn't notice the oak that much. Superb length as well. A little gem!
Rating: A

[Mike Hawkins]

1996 Wolf Blass Black Label - underwhelming is overstating it. Boring, thin, lacked any complexity.

2001 Grant Burge Meshach - not as overripe as other BV shiraz from the vintage. Highly primary. Definitely a long-termer...